George Kiel III (EN) - Sneaker mag

George Kiel III (EN)

Interview with Editor-in-Chief of NiceKicks.com and host of famous Sneak Peek.

How did you get into sneakers?

My affinity for sneakers is a by product of my lifelong attachment with basketball. In junior high school and high school, me and my friends and teammates always wanted to wear the best shoes on court. My dad never bought me Air Jordans, but I remember having some of the best Nike Basketball sneakers at that time, such as the Nike Air Zom T-Bug Flight (my favorite), the Nike Air More Uptempo, the Nike Air Zoom Flight Turbine and other unappreciated sneakers. It was during those times that I really started to appreciate shoes.

You are the editor in chief of one of the most readable sneaker magazine in the world „Nice Kicks", how did you become one of your aditorial staff?

During my last two semesters of college, I played on the basketball team, wrote for my university newspaper and partook in a television journalism internship with FOX KTBC. Following my last semester, I responded to a NiceKicks.com job application that I found, believe it or not, on Craigslist. After a couple of interviews, I was offered a position on the editorial team as a staff writer. The rest is history.

Why is project Nice Kicks so popular in your opinion?

I think the NiceKicks.com team has done a great job of balancing our news coverage, strengthening our columns over the years, and providing a source of entertainment through our videos. Matt Halfhill, the founder of the website, has done a good job of adding people that are well equipped for the different roles. Ian Stonebrook, Sid Ashford, Pierce Simpson and everyone else on the team work well together, and we are constantly working to bring great content to the site.

Nice Kicks store

You are host of „Sneak Peeks", can you tell us which collection has impressed you most?

I'd say Kenny G., also known as The Perfect Pair, impressed me the most. I remember going to shoot our first episode with him at like 5 AM before catching a flight that same day at 9 AM and almost missing the flight because he had so many gems and stories to share. His collection is not the biggest we've seen, but it definitely features many shoes that most can't get their hands on. Also, I was really infatuated with my friend and Kansas City Royals pitcher Jeremy Guthrie's collection. He has some amazing PEs.

George with Kenny

Some Air Jordan 3s from Kenny´s collection

Can you tell us something about the upcoming episodes? For example who will be in the next episode?

Well, we have two more episodes in this Season 6, which features themed and particular collections. We have someone with an impressive LeBron collection coming up and another subject that owns a collection full of overseas exclusives. Both are impressive. As for Season 7, we have some things in the works. Look for us to put the spotlight on a few retired and current NBA players.

Dont be suprised when Kareem Abdul Jabbar will be in upcoming episode..

Can you do for us little Sneak Peek to you collection? How much pairs do you own?

I have about 150-200 pairs, but over my lifetime I've probably owned close to 500 sneakers. Each October, I give a lot of my sneakers away to my local church, which sends a ton of sneakers to Shoes for Orphan Souls, a non-profit organization formed to collect and distribute new shoes and medicine for children around the world. I want to eventually size down to about 80, if not less. Quality is more important than quantity, in my opinion, and I want to keep only the ones I wear on a consistent basis. Less is more. Also, the majority of my sneakers are grey, as that is my favorite color. Some of my most favored are the KRINK Air Force 1, the "Green Bean" Air Jordan 5, and the "Light Graphite" Air Jordan XIV LS from 2005.

Which pair do you miss in your collection most?

I miss the "Cool Grey" Air Jordan 4, one of my all-time favorite shoes. I also want to get my hands on the Prelude Nike Zoom Kobe II. I really like the marble design on those.

Air Jordan 4 "Cool Grey"

Recently reselling has become very popular, what is your opinion about it?

I'm not a fan of reselling whatsoever. I think it's horrible that the people who really want the shoe are not able to get it because others are buying 3-4 pairs just to sell them. It's ludicrous. Also, the prices at which they're reselling these shoes are outlandish. I also blame the people that are buying the shoes at those prices.

Is there anything what you want to tell both your and our readers?

Yes. Thanks for always checking out what's happening on NiceKicks.com. We really appreciate it. Also, check out my new nonprofit foundation, the Kiel Colon Cancer Foundation. We have a lot of cool events coming up, including the second Kick & Roll Classic 3-on-3 Basketball, which is the first ever sneaker-themed basketball tournament designed to generate revenue for colon cancer, raise awareness of the disease, honor colon cancer survivors, educate the youth about the affliction and encourage people to live a healthy lifestyle. Check it out at kielcoloncancer.org.

George at Kick & Roll Classic

At the end you can check out some cool pictures from George´s archives: